The pandemic has had varying impacts on different people in different parts of the world. But at a basic level, we all, all of us on this planet, have felt like one. When we spoke to someone, maybe in our neighbourhood or thousands of miles away, there was one topic we related to: how we were coping.
All of us shared a worry - about our health. We stayed at home, remembered to wash our hands frequently, wore masks, kept a safe distance from one another ...
In the midst of all this, on May 25, a medieval show of brute force snuffs out the life of a man in front of a live video camera.
In 2008, the chant "Yes, We Can", reverberated across the United States. On November 4 that year, while I was watching the concession speech of John McCain on a TV screen during dinner at a San Francisco restaurant, the enormity of the historic event was still sinking in.
The dominant view among many people I spoke to was that it was not just about America getting its first African American president. It was also a symbolic break from the past in the way one looked at another person, and that too, when at stake was who the new president should be.
Twelve years later, one single incident sets the clock back, brings latent fissures and frustrations -- which many people think began building up since 2016 -- to the fore. Hundreds of thousands of people pour on to the streets in many cities across the globe, crying out, yet again, for a change.
'Black lives matter' is not just about the colour of the skin. It's about everyone who is marginalised, not just in the United States but all over the world. People are discriminated and victimised often because of reasons like nationality, the language one speaks, the food that one eats, the religion one practises, hierarchies in society, office ... the list goes on.
These are nothing but mere labels. They don't really mean anything.
It doesn't matter which clock one looks at to know the time.
It doesn't matter what colour the umbrella is when it rains.
It doesn't matter what transport one takes to reach a destination in time.
It doesn't matter what movie one watches or what music one listens to in order to relax.
It doesn't matter what exercise one does to stay fit and healthy.
It doesn't matter what colour the umbrella is when it rains.
It doesn't matter what transport one takes to reach a destination in time.
It doesn't matter what movie one watches or what music one listens to in order to relax.
It doesn't matter what exercise one does to stay fit and healthy.
It doesn't matter what food one eats when hungry.
We are all just humans beings.
Mercifully, it's not gloom and doom all around. There are many slivers of radiance shining through the clouds, spreading love, affection, kindness, compassion, generosity, and humility.
And thereby comes the hope of real change.